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Motor experience with a sport-specific implement affects motor imagery.
Lanlan Zhang1, Yanling Pi2, Hua Zhu1
1School of Kinesiology, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai, China.
Peerj
|May 3, 2018
Summary
Sport-specific equipment enhances motor imagery in basketball experts, improving performance. Non-specific items disrupt this mental simulation, unlike in novices, highlighting the role of experience in motor representation.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Sport Psychology
- Motor Control
Background:
- Motor imagery is crucial for skill acquisition and performance in sports.
- The influence of external tools on motor imagery is not fully understood.
- Expertise modulates cognitive processes related to motor skills.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how sport-specific and non-specific implements affect motor imagery in basketball players.
- To examine the role of expertise in the relationship between implements and motor imagery.
- To assess the impact of implements on temporal congruence and vividness of kinesthetic imagery.
Main Methods:
- Basketball players (experts) and healthy controls (novices) performed and mentally simulated basketball throws.
- Participants held a basketball, a volleyball, or nothing during motor imagery.
- Motor imagery performance was evaluated using temporal congruence and vividness of kinesthetic imagery.
Main Results:
- Experts showed enhanced temporal congruence and vividness with a basketball, but disruption with a volleyball, compared to holding nothing.
- Novices' motor imagery was not significantly affected by implement manipulation.
- A negative correlation was found between temporal congruence and imagery vividness in experts holding a basketball.
Conclusions:
- Sport-specific implements facilitate motor imagery in experts by leveraging motor experience.
- Non-specific implements can disrupt motor representation in experts.
- Expertise-dependent modulation of motor imagery by external tools is evident.
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